Nas And Swizz Beatz Touch Down At ESPY Awards

Hip-hop was in the house last night at the ESPY Awards as Nas and Swizz Beatz took to the stage to perform several tracks from his much anticipated album Life Is Good.

Backed by a live band and DJ Green Lantern on the turntables, the celebrated MC, donned in a black tuxedo, kicked off the gig with the two-fisted throwback track “Nasty.”

With such sports lumanaies as Drew Brees, Pat Summit, and Jeremy Lin looking on, Nas followed up his high-energy workout with the sneering “The Don,” a song produced by longtime collaborator Salaam Remi and the late Heavy D. Later on in the live telecast, Nas was joined onstage by super producer Swizz Beatz for the chest-beating club anthem “Summer On Smash.”

NBA point guard Steve Nash, who was recently traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, lauded the rapper’s performance on Twitter. “Esco!! Cant wait for the album!” Nas quickly answered back: “Steve I got copies for u right now!!!”

Nas wasn’t the only highlight at the ESPY Awards which took place at Los Angeles’ Nokia Theater. New York Knicks breakout sensation Jeremy Lin, New York Jets NFL star Tim Tebow, Baylor women’s college basketball phenom Brittney Griner, and Miami Heat NBA champion LeBron James all picked up trophies.

It’s been a busy week for Nas. The legendary lyricist, who is coming off a Eurpeon tour, has leaked several tracks from his highly anticipated tenth album Life Is Good. One particular song that has been sparking a lot of discussion this week on the Web is the personal song “Bye Baby.” —Keith Murphy, CBS Local